Arts & Culture

Amidst “Never Better Than Nothing” Truly Acapulco Gold!

Cash for your car

Los Angeles rock-band Amidst takes the LA music scene by storm with their first album Never Better Than Nothing. With a nomination of Best Record of the Year at the upcoming 20th Los Angeles Music Awards 2010, Amidst sounds like a veteran rock band with twenty years experience playing together. The band features Jonathan Marquez on Lead Vocals, Piano and Synths; Michel Denegri on Bass; Fernando Torreblanca on Drums and Vocals; and Alex Bajos on Guitar. Each member shared in the writing and/or producing credits and every song could easily be a top ten hit.

The band started in 2008 when Fernando Torreblanca, Jonathan Marquez and Michel Denegri started writing songs together and as they took form, Luis Torreblanca, Fernando’s brother, added brilliant guitar work from his hometown of Mexico City. With guest appearances by guitarist Carlos Chairez and violinist Pablo Hopenhayn, the record was finished off by Grammy Award nominee Mark Needham who did a masterful job mixing this record. With the need of a permanent guitarist, the band brought in Alex Bajos, who I recently saw perform with the band in Anaheim, California. Alex played excellent rhythm and lead guitar and blended in like they have been together since the beginning.

The first song ‘I Need It’ is a high energy tune that could easily bring the United States out of the current recession with massive air play. The rhythm section of Fernando Torreblanca and Michel Denegri is so tight you know from this first song the entire CD will be great. Following ‘I Need It’ is another fast paced high energy song called ‘In the Middle.’ Both of these songs will have appeal to both the young music lover as well as older generation music lovers. Amidst seems to not only have great musicianship and song writing capabilities, but a tremendous ear-for-music which most bands don’t have. The third song is the title track ‘Never Better Than Nothing’ which the band is currently producing their first video for. One listen to this song and you can tell they have the same formula the Beatles had, creating music for both the male and female energy.

These first three songs set the stage for the rest of the CD which showcase the band’s diverse musical talent and taste. As I listened to the slower and more romantic songs like ‘As You Are,’ ‘Poison,’ and ‘The Only One,’ I realized Jonathan Marquez is a modern day Bryan Ferry. The seductive quality of Jonathan’s vocals is complimented by his brilliant piano work. The more I listened, the more I was convinced Jonathan was a well trained pro with years of musical training. As expected, his biography filled in the blanks and sure enough, he has been performing professionally since he was nine years old. Similar to Bryan Ferry, Jonathan sings with a suave tone and also has had acting and musical stage experience which has brought out shear emotion and compassion is his voice and piano work. One listen to ‘Someone in a Picture’ or ‘The Only One’ and you can tell the level of training and experience Jonathan has had as a vocalist and pianist.

Perhaps the most powerful song on the record is ‘This Is War’ which is the last track on the CD. This is a well produced song that not only holds a message it shows how far this band can musically go. With a mix of President Obama at the end of the song, it made me wonder if President Obama could understand music of this caliber can only come from a free society where people have freedom to create and not be controlled by a dominating government. The bass line provided by Michel Denegri and thunder-storm drumming of Fernando Torreblanco shows how this band could push itself to higher limits similar to progressive masters Genesis or The Flower Kings.

With Fernando Torreblanca and Michel Denegri keeping the rhythm section air-tight, Alex Bajos being able to shift from rhythm to lead without anyone noticing, and Jonathan Marquez being able to make girls cry, this band is destined for mega-stardom. Having roots in both the United States and Acapulco, Mexico, this band has given “Acapulco Gold” a new meaning. Five Star Rating!

www.AmidstTheBand.com

About the author

Duke James